


For This Moment

by timehopper



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - Fandom
Genre: Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2015-12-22
Packaged: 2018-05-06 20:40:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5430095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timehopper/pseuds/timehopper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Quark and Tenmyouji take a break to play in the snow. (Written for ZEcret Santa 2015)</p>
            </blockquote>





	For This Moment

**Author's Note:**

> Written for for fluffyplumicorn for ZEcret Santa 2015! Enjoy!

The snow is white, blinding white, not like it was after the outbreak, when the first layer of snow was white, but as soon as it was packed down, crunched under a ratty pair of survivors' shoes and dragged back up again, it was a grotesque gray-brown sludge that clung to everything. But not anymore; now, more than 40 years later, though the earth itself has turned red, the snow still falls white. Tenmyouji isn't sure how it's possible, exactly, but he doesn't care: that the snow is safe is all that matters.

He couldn't miss a day of collecting, after all. Not when everyone else would be indoors, trying to keep warm.

He looks ahead of himself, at Quark, pulling a small makeshift sled behind him by a string, and smiles. He's slowed down a lot in his advanced age, but Quark keeps him on his toes, and he's grateful for that. As if sensing his thoughts, the boy turns around with a big smile, and shouts, "C'mon, Grandpa, you're slowing me down!"

Tenmyouji just chuckles and tries to pick up the pace. "I'm coming, I'm coming!"

"If you say so!" He turns around again and keeps going.

Quark doesn't see it, but Tenmyouji smiles. The cold and snow may slow him down, but Quark seems to thrive in it. He loves the snow even though it seeps through his thin shoes and drenches his socks, even though he'll come home with a red, dripping nose after a long day of collecting. He works hard -- too hard for a kid his age. Tenmyouji can remember when he was that age and all he wanted to do when it snowed was stay inside and watch it fall and ignore the schoolwork he needed to do. Back when that was allowed and a day of work could be skipped without consequence. Not now, when a missed day meant a missed meal.

He does some calculations in his head: how much they need today, how long they'll have to search to get it. He picks up a handful of snow as he thinks and absentmindedly starts packing it together, all while watching Quark trudge forward up ahead.

 _Screw it_ , he thinks, and throws the snowball. It hits Quark square in the shoulder.

Quark gives a shout of surprise and whips around so fast his hat falls askew. Tenmyouji just grins at him and holds up his hands in surrender, and he knows instantly by Quark's determined smile that the game is on.

Quark drops the sled string and bends over to pick up some snow, forming a snowball as quickly as he can and throwing it before Tenmyouji can get out of the way. It just misses, and Tenmyouji mimics him. Within minutes, the two of them are rapidly making and throwing snowballs at each other, running around and laughing, trying not to get hit, chasing each other round and round until Tenmyouji can't run anymore.

"That all you got, Grandpa?" Quark teases, ever the brat, but Tenmyouji can't be mad. He's the one who started this, after all.

"You kidding me? I've still got energy to spare!" he says, but it's clear by the way he's almost wheezing that it just isn't true. Quark laughs.

"Suuuure you do. But I think I'm done with the snowballs anyway." He drops the last clumps of snow in his hands and dusts his mittens off on his pants. Secretly, Tenmyouji is relieved. "But if you really want to keep playing... maybe we could make a snowman?"

It doesn't take any time at all for Tenmyouji to bend down and start packing more snow together.

Quark nearly squeals with delight and gets to work rolling a giant snowball. "I'll make the body," he calls, and again Tenmyouji is relieved, because he's really running out of steam just by rolling the one he's making now. I really need to get myself back in shape, he thinks, but keeps pushing the snow anyway.

Quark comes over to help him push the snowball over to his own and hoist it up. The head meets the body and the two of them work together to shape it properly, even it out. When they finally have the shape right, Tenmyouji steps back and looks at it, hand on his chin. Little Quark imitates him, cocking his head to the side and squinting whenever his Grandpa does.

"It's missing something," Tenmyouji says. "But what could it be?"

"A face!" Quark supplied. "He needs a face! And arms! And... and _hair_!"

"I've never seen a snowman with hair before," Tenmyouji tells Quark, "But I think you're right about the face. What've you got?"

"Hm." Quark digs in his pocket and pulls out some small parts they had found earlier. He holds them out for his grandpa's approval: a few nuts and bolts, some old buttons and buckles, a few screws, and some pens. There isn't much, but they can work with it.

And work with it Tenmyouji does. He tells Quark to pick out the nicest buttons while he takes the nuts and bolts and fixes them into the head, creating a face out of rusting metal. Quark places the buttons on the snowman's body, then throws his scarf around its neck.

"Perfect."

And it really does look good for what it is. It's a messy mish-mash of junk and snow, things that don't match but work together anyway. It's Tenmyouji and Quark rolled together into ice and snow and cold.

Tenmyouji loves it.

 _Wish I had a camera_ , the old man thinks, but he settles for tucking the snowman and Quark's gigantic smile into the corner of his mind where he keeps his best memories, right next to the summer of sixth grade when Akane Kurashiki told him she was glad he was there to help her with the rabbits.

"Let's go home," says Tenmyouji suddenly, and Quark looks at him with surprise.

"But Grandpa, we haven't even--"

"No buts," he says. "You've already had a long day. Look, I can see how tired you are." He points to Quarks chest and the boy looks down, only to get flicked in the nose by a laughing Tenmyouji. Quark laughs too and doesn't try to argue: he knows chances to slack off don't come often, so he'll take them whenever he can.

They make the trek back home happily, chit-chatting about all the things they might be missing out on today but know they wouldn't find even if they were the only garbage sifters in the whole world: treasure chests filled with gold, old video game systems that still work, unbroken and still-full bottles of scotch and whiskey and root beer and coca-cola. They laugh at each other and their frivolous wishes all the way to the front door, and even after, until Tenmyouji leaves Quark on the couch wrapped up in a blanket.

He walks into their small, run-down kitchen and starts fiddling around. He reaches into cupboards, pushing things aside until he finds what he's looking for. He gathers a mug and some milk, then pulls out a small machine he'd spent weeks trying to put together.

Tenmyouji dumps a small pack of powder into the mug, then pours the milk. He places the mug in the machine and turns it on, waiting for it to work its magic -- hoping it will work its magic.

It does. The old man nods with satisfaction. He'd found this old, broken-down milk steamer more than a month ago, and immediately had salvaged it. It would have fetched a pretty penny once he'd fixed it up a bit, but Tenmyouji had decided as soon as he'd found it that he would be giving it to Quark for Christmas. Quark loved little devices like this, even if before the breakout Tenmyouji would have found it frivolous and useless. He had originally planned to give it to Quark still half-broken, along with some of the parts he'd found -- Quark loved to tinker with things and fix them -- but had decided, when he'd seen someone in one of the few remaining coffee shops left ordering a cup of hot cocoa, that was what he was going to do. He could find something else for Quark to fix. There was no shortage of broken machines.

It wasn't Christmas yet, but it didn't matter. This would be fine. Tenmyouji had found a place to buy the mix for hot chocolate and gotten enough to last a few cups. They could have more on Christmas, together, when they exchanged gifts. The thought made Tenmyouji smile fondly, remembering past years where Quark would scrounge something up for him. The older he got, the more refined the gifts were. The best one had come last year, when he'd given his grandpa a thick patchwork sweater, made up of bits and pieces of old ones he'd probably found while collecting. No doubt he'd had some help from the neighbours in putting it together, and it was a hideous thing, but it was surprisingly comfortable. Tenmyouji loved that sweater. He had resolved to wear it every Christmas from then on as soon as he'd opened it: a new tradition for the two of them.

Maybe hot cocoa would become one as well. He wasn't sure. But the cup he'd just prepared was ready now, and after he dropped a few marshmallows in there -- another luxury he'd decided to treat the kid with -- he carried it through to Quark, who was still on the couch, all swaddled up, playing with the straps on his hat.

"Surprise." Tenmyouji set the mug down on the table and Quark immediately jumped up to take it.

"What are these?" Quark asked, gazing down at the puffy clouds in his drink. He prods at one and finds it sticks to his finger, only slightly. "They're sticky."

"Marshmallows," Tenmyouji tells him. Quark's eyes widen and his jaw drops, amazed that his Grandpa could possibly find these anywhere. He thought they, like root beer floats, were an unreachable luxury. Before he can say anything, Tenmyouji waves his hand. "Go on, drink it! Don't want it to be just regular old chocolate, do you?"

"No way!" And Quark starts to sip at it immediately, pulling the gooey marshmallows in with his tongue when it's just cool enough not to burn him. The two of them chatter for a while, Quark worried about not meeting their junk quotient for the day, which Tenmyouji laughs at, and Tenmyouji telling him it'll be fine, they'll just have to work twice as hard tomorrow. Quark seems satisfied with that, and he continues to drink his hot chocolate.

Eventually, Tenmyouji nods off in his chair, worn from the days and days of nonstop work, and Quark goes to cover him with a blanket.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate, Grandpa," he whispers, and, making sure Tenmyouji really is asleep, tucks the corners of the old blanket around his shoulders. "Have a good sleep!"

Tenmyouji smiles.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this and are interested in seeing more or even just having a chat, feel free to contact and/or follow me on twitter [@tim3hopp3r](https://twitter.com/tim3hopp3r) or my [personal tumblr](http://therealhousewivesofhyrule.tumblr.com/).
> 
> I also have a [writing blog](https://intim3ate.tumblr.com) where I post progress, WIPs, and take requests. Please check that out if you'd like to see more!
> 
> As always, thank you for reading and supporting me. ♥


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